'Highest honour:' pride flag flies outside Regina city hall

The pride flag was raised in front of Regina City Hall Monday morning as Queen City Pride is underway.

“It’s significant because it’s the official marker for celebrating the LGBT community in Regina and it symbolizes the partnership between the city and our community,” said festival co-chair Dan Shier.

“It is a great way to bring visibility to the community. Having the flag in a prominent location like the city hall solidifies that we have a positive relationship with the city.”

Regina Mayor Michael Fougere agreed with Shier, saying the flag raising showed “that city council and the citizens of Regina very much want to have an inclusive, tolerant understanding community that respects human rights.”

“It’s part of who we are as a community and I think we have to celebrate our differences.”

Fougere said the pride flag has been raised during pride week for the past seven or eight years.

“It shows that we take the issue of gender diversity and equality very seriously and the best way we can do this, to actually show this, is by raising the flag,” he said. “That’s the highest honour we can give any event.”